War torn

IT WAS the kind of pro­gram that Aus­tralian view­ers would tra­di­tion­ally have found on the ABC.

In­stead, Chan­nel 7 snapped up Down­ton Abbey’s first sea­son, which screened here on South­ern Cross, and last May this coun­try be­came part of a pe­riod- drama rat­ings tsunami. Down­ton ruled the drama rat­ings in the UK and the US.

A swag of tele­vi­sion awards later, sea­son two has hit our shores.

When we last saw the Craw­leys and the ser­vants who keep their lives tick­ing, World War I had just bro­ken out. Now it’s 1916, and Down­ton’s res­i­dents are in con­flict at home and abroad.

Lady Mary ( Michelle Dock­ery) and Matthew ( Dan Stevens) are still cir­cling each other from afar, Anna ( Joanna Frog­gatt) and Bates ( Bren­dan Coyle) are prov­ing the course of true love never runs smooth, and Sy­bil ( Jes­sica Brown Find­lay) is still the gen­teel rebel, egged on by Cousin Is­abel ( Pene­lope Wil­ton).